Prickley Pines Daycare
by CloudKitsune17
Summary: Things can change after the simple, care free months in Camp Kidney. So when Lazlo returns to camp, what will he do when he bumps into Edward, who now lives in Prickley Pines? LazloEdward


**Prickley Pines Daycare**

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Pairing(s): Lazlo x Edward, past Beaver x Edward

Summary: Things can change after the simple, care free months in Camp Kidney. So when Lazlo returns to camp, in hopes to lend out a helping hand to his favorite scoutmaster Lumpus and Mr. Slinkman, what will he do when he bumps into Edward, who now lives in Prickley Pines?

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**Chapter 1**

**Back in Camp Kidney!**

The humid air of summer heat and scent of minty pine trees that surrounded the little camp area filled Lazlo's nose as soon as he stepped off the bus. It felt very familiar, like his first day of camp all over again, minus the delicious fruits on his head and fruit truck that escorted him to his destination. There was also the fact that Lazlo was no longer ten years old, nor even twelve for that matter. Today would be different, Lazlo knew, for this summer break, he wouldn't _be_ a Bean Scout, but a helper to Camp Kidney, working _with_ the new scouts as the other adults have done when he was their age.

It had been a few years since Lazlo was able to return to Camp Kidney, having been too old to remain as a Bean Scout but too young to help Scoutmaster Lumpus and Mr. Slinkman in their job of watching and taking care of the new campers that replaced their old campers that Lazlo had been among. But now, he was the golden age of seventeen, old enough to his parents and the Bean Scout Rule Book to leave home and work as a scout helper. The thought made Lazlo's heart bubble with giddy glee, being able to return to his childhood camp that he loves so much. He couldn't remove the large, blissful smile that took over his face, not that Lazlo wanted to.

As the spider monkey started to make his way down the path from the entrance the bus had dropped him off, Lazlo paused only slightly to look up and scan the large sign that read 'Welcome to Camp Kidney! Don't steal anything!' sea green eyes sparkling in excitement as his smile widened even more, if possible. _'I'm finally back!'_ Lazlo thought to himself, shaking in his spot with uncontained anxiety that made him want to shout out his happiness to the whole world, to run around wildly screaming at the top of his lunges his infamous cheer of 'Yucca!' whenever he had an idea, and to hug every Camp member he recognized as soon as possible. It was a shame, though, that none of the campers he had played with when younger wouldn't be there, all busy with their own life with summer jobs in their hometown and the like.

Taking a large, relaxing breath of air, before letting it out, Lazlo started down the path to the scoutmaster's cabin again, which still seemed to be a tall, unstable house instead of the many common cabins that completed the circle around the center pole in the camp, where announcements were made from by Mr. Slinkman himself. Even the mess hall hadn't changed over the years he had been gone, and from the distance from where he stood, Leaky Lake looked just as murky and watery as ever. From as far as Lazlo could tell from scanning the area of Camp Kidney, nothing had changed in his absence. And that only excited Lazlo more.

As of that moment, no Bean Scouts cluttered the camp site. But despite that, life was still bringing the camp to life, the staff returning to their post that ended as soon as the campers go home, Nurse Leslie re-checking his supply of bandages, medicine, and such, Chef McMuesli doing the same but with food instead and kitchen utensils. Mr. Slinkman was more then likely cleaning up the scoutmaster lounge, fixing up any loose ends with paper work and the like to get ready for the new campers that would start to appear the next day, while Scoutmaster Lumpus lazed about in his office, enjoying the quiet of the first day of summer before it was ruined by the restless Bean Scouts that would most likely bother him with innocent questions or just their mere presence.

Lazlo held back a giggle that came out as an eager squeal, facing the door to Lumpus and Slinkman's cabin with wide, excited sea green eyes sparkling as he locked them onto the door knob that shimmered in the summer sun, like a holy relic that would grant the spider monkey's greatest desires. With quivering hands, Lazlo reached out to the door knob, taking it within his suddenly sweaty palm, gripping it with a soft caress before turning his wrist, moving the knob with him as it clicked open, unlocked, welcoming him inside. Stepping inside the familiar room, Lazlo gave the place a quick once over, noticing nothing had changed inside either. Sure, it was a lot cleaner, most likely thanks to Mr. Slinkman in his morning cleaning rush, but from every item that was hanging from the walls, shelves and chairs leaning against the wooden walls, rug on the floor, still covering the center of the room neatly and giving it a more homey feel. Even a few potted plants remained in their little corners, looking nice and healthy under Slinkman's care.

"Hellooo?" Lazlo called, before fully stepping into the entrance hall, shutting the door behind him softly as not to be rude. Hearing the door close with an audible click, the spider monkey turned his attention to the open door that led further into the Scoutmaster's lounge. As Lazlo walked deeper into the building, he spotted the old, creaky staircase that rose upstairs, where Lumpus and Mr. Slinkman slept, before turning his eyes to the side, where a door was open just a crack, where the Scoutmaster's office was set up, sunlight shining through a window that peeked through the crack to crawl across the wooden floor and lick at Lazlo's feet. A familiar deep grumble reached Lazlo's ears, coming from inside the office room, sparking Lazlo's previous smile to widen before nearly frolicking the rest of the distance before thrusting the door fully open, cheering loudly as he called, "I'M BACK, SCOUTMASTER LUMPUS!!"

"AAAHHHH!!!" Lumpus returned the sudden shout from the spider monkey, falling off his chair while gripping at his desk like it was his life line. As he hid behind the wooden desk, peeking over the top to stare at the younger boy through his glasses, quivering from where he sat on the floor, Lumpus shouted in a pleading tone, "SLINKMAN! I'M HAVING THAT NIGHTMARE AGAIN!!!"

"Oh, come now, Sir," Slinkman's drawled, tired voice called from above, followed by the noise of the staircase creaking under unwanted weight as the banana slug made his way downstairs. But before he turned to head into Lumpus' office and noticing Lazlo standing in the doorway flashing one of his friendly smiles at the small slug-man, he continued on, "I am very busy getting ready and have no time for your games and---AH! L-Lazlo!"

"Hiya, Mr. Slinkman!" Lazlo greeted happily, waving a hand, completely ignoring the fact that Slinkman was wearing a black maid suit with white frills and held a matching feather duster of black and white feathers. He was just so happy to see his favorite camp members again after so long apart!

"Um, excuse me, Lazlo, but," Mr. Slinkman started off, slowly entering the office as Lazlo seemed to skip inside, setting down his feather duster on a book shelf that he passed before continuing nervously, "What are you doing here? You do know you are far too old to be a Bean Scout, don't you?"

"Of course I do!" Lazlo nodded happily, giggling as he plopped down in one of the chairs that sat before Lumpus' desk, who had finally crawled up off the floor to sit uneasily in his own chair, adjusting his glasses that had fallen a bit off his nose in his fall.

"Then what are you doing here?!" Lumpus demanded quickly, slamming a tight fist atop his desk, which caused his name tag and a pile of papers to jump up slightly before landing back on the serves of the wooden desk, the pile nearly tipping over and fluttering to the floor in a mess if it wasn't for Slinkman rushing over to push it right back up. Letting out a relieved sigh and wiping the nervous sweat off his forehead from the worry of yet another mess to clean up, Mr. Slinkman shot a short glare at the mouse, before turning his attention back to Lazlo, trying to calm his frazzled nerves.

"I don't want to seem rude, but I am wondering the same thing," Mr. Slinkman announced, before nicely, and calmly, asking the spider monkey, "Why _are_ you here, Lazlo?"

Lazlo's smile faded as he started, "Well, to be honest, I missed Camp Kidney soooo much over the last five years, and now that I turned seventeen, Mom and Dad said it'd be alright if I stayed here over summer break by myself and work." His smile returned as Lazlo cocked his head rather cutely to the side, slightly squealing his words in sudden excitement that was hard to suppress, "So I came here to help out and work as a Camp staff member! Isn't it great?!"

Slinkman slowly smiled at this, the thought of getting an extra hand in watching over the scouts would be a huge weight off his small shoulders, which was already over weighted with Lumpus' own job that he refused to do, leaving it in Slinkman's hands. But just as the banana slug was about to except the once Bean Scout's offered help with open arms, Scoutmaster Lumpus, just like the stubborn mouse that he is, quickly shouted out in protest, "No! No, no, no! We have enough staff members already in this camp, so we're just fine as we are!"

"Oh... Really?" Lazlo asked, frowning sadly before turning his eyes to his shoes, which kicked back and forth under the chair he sat on, swaying slowly. He had been so excited at the possibility of getting to work over summer break at his favorite camp he's ever, and only ever, been to.

Ignoring the suddenly deflated spider monkey, Mr. Slinkman shot a glare over at the Scoutmaster, crossing his arms over his chest as he stated in a stern tone, "Scoutmaster Lumpus! I do more work then I should be, and if Lazlo is so willing to offer his help to us, don't turn him down. At least give the boy a chance, _Sir_."

Lazlo's face brightened at Slinkman's words, smile remaining dormant as he stared at the banana slug with impressed wonder. Mr. Slinkman may not of been the Scoutmaster that Lumpus was, but he certainly knew how to get the last word in, even if he didn't get his way a lot of the time. It was usually he and his friends, Raj and Clam, who would help Slinkman the rest of the way to get what he wanted, like a vacation at Slugfest and competing in that race. But at this moment, from staring at the defeated look on Lumpus' face, Lazlo could tell Mr. Slinkman needed no help on this disagreement with the old mouse.

"Oh alright..." Scoutmaster Lumpus groaned, head and shoulders slouching in reluctant defeat, before he shot up straight in his seat, giving Lazlo, who was now smiling widely once more, a hard glare as Lumpus demanded, "But you better stay out of my way, monkey-boy! I don't want to hear any of your... crazy ideas of having_fun_ in camp. Stick to your job and we'll get along just fine."

"Aye aye, Scoutmaster Lumpus!" Lazlo jumped up off his seat, giving the mouse a mock salute with his usual charming smile curling his lips happy-go-lucky. To add salt to the wound, in Lumpus' case, Lazlo continued eagerly, "I'll be the best helper you'll ever have!"

"I'm sure you will, Lazlo," Mr. Slinkman smiled reassuringly, ignoring the negative grumbling from Lumpus who doubted the monkey would be anything but a nuisance to him. Suddenly switching to business mode, Slinkman guided Lazlo out of Lumpus' office, and even out of the building all together before stopping just outside. "Now, before the campers get here, we should probably find a place for you to sleep." Seeing Lazlo nod eagerly at this, smile never faltering, the banana slug continued, "We do have a small, extra cabin a little aways down, where you can stay until summer is over. It will be just like staying in the cabin you had shared with your fellow Bean Scouts, minus the extra room for three."

"That's fine," Lazlo nodded in acceptance, sea green eyes sparkling with the sun that shined in his orange-brown locks of hair. He didn't care if he was stuffed in a closet to sleep in, for all he cared. Lazlo was just happy to be back in the familiar camp he loves and had missed. He was just happy to be able to announce within his mind,_'I'm back in Camp Kidney!'_

--

The next morning, Lazlo woke up with the sun, an hour and a half before the time the wake up call would initionally be sounded, if there were any Bean Scouts in their cabins. But soon those empty cabins would be filled with three new campers in each, naming their cabin as Lazlo had done with his own friends. The early morning sun was just a gentle heat, the air more minty pine then the humid heat it had been when the spider monkey had arrived. Taking his morning shower in the lavatories as he did every start of a brand new day, Lazlo changed into his Camp Kidney uniform that Mr. Slinkman had given to him before sending him to his personal cabin for the night that was nestled in between a couple tall pine trees, just behind a cabin that Lazlo remembered being once called Pinto Cabin, holding two dung beetle brothers and an angry platypus.

It wasn't until a few more hours after Lazlo had readied himself before campers arrived on the bus, or buses, some campers coming from far away like he, Raj, and Clam had. The first to arrive was a hedgehog, cow, and three lemmings, all resembling the other lemmings that had gone to camp with Lazlo. Lazlo wondered if they were related at all, and when asked, they only responded they had a sister in Acorn Flats. Shrugging it off, the spider monkey turned his attention to the next batch of campers, which were two rabbits, a pelican, seal, crane, pig, ram, and owl. The third bus held a panda, kangaroo, giraffe, coyote, and a hamster. By then, nearly all the campers had arrived, according to Mr. Slinkman's list. All, but two still remained to appear.

It took two hours before the last and final bus arrived, having been delayed because of a flat tire and a certain ferret Bean Scout running off into the nearby woods as the bus driver, Ralph, changed the tire. By the time the bus did finally arrive, most of the scouts were in the mess hall, while the ones who already ate remained standing in a circle or uneven line standing before Slinkman and his list, Lazlo standing a few steps behind the banana slug as he swayed on his heels. When the bus came to a stop, Lazlo turned his fleeting attention over towards the vehicle, noticing a small commotion as the bus' door slid open, followed by two campers falling out gracelessly, one growling as the other atop the first giggled affectionately.

Lazlo could faintly hear Ralph growl under his breath a "Finally" before shutting the bus door and driving off as quickly as possible, leaving the two last scouts on the ground, the albino haired ferret boy snuggling the red haired bird of paradise who held thin, yellow streaks here and there in his rather long hair that was pulled back in a neat, loose ponytail who lay on the dirty ground, looking very displeased with the affection the other bestowed upon him. Something about seeing the two reminded Lazlo of a certain platypus who had also disliked the spider monkey's affection he happily gave to the blonde...

Noticing that a few other Bean Scouts and Mr. Slinkman were staring, the ferret seemed to panic, jumping up off the bird of paradise in favor to run behind a cabin, only peeking around a bit here and there when he believed no one was watching. The other scouts and camp members shrugged it off for now, Mr. Slinkman waiting for the rest of the scouts that were in the mess hall to return outside and gather around him before going over who goes into which cabin and what name the group would call each cabin. The group of three was fixed up easily as it had when Lazlo was a Bean Scout, and a few names were learned quickly.

The raven haired hedgehog, Spike, had joined up with the blonde haired cow, Herbie, and sandy brown haired minx, James. Rufus, the red haired bird of paradise, reluctantly joined the brother rabbits, Pip and Zip. The albino ferret, Sky, who had finally come out of his hiding spot as soon as Mr. Slinkman announced it was time to group up, was placed with the blonde kangaroo, Rocko, and orange haired giraffe, Mitch. The messy haired coyote, Jake, Asian panda with dyed white hair in his natural black, Ping, and a brown haired hamster, Matthew, made another group, as well as the blonde haired pelican, Paul, and crane, Steve, and an albino white seal, Sea, made another. Another group, who's name Lazlo had missed, were of a pink haired pig, a nearly white blonde haired ram, and dirty auburn haired owl. Not to forget the three brother lemmings who all joined together to make a group all on their own.

That settled and written onto Slinkman's sheet of paper, the new scouts entered their cabins to think of their cabin's names for the rest of the summer they would use, while the select few who had already decided on a name were wandering around the camp grounds, getting a better feel of their surrounding or just wanting to wander for the fun of it. Lazlo, on the other hand, had nothing much to do as of that moment, so began to head over to Leaky Lake, feeling up to staring into its murky water until Mr. Slinkman came back from inside the Scoutmaster lounge with an activity list of fun things they could do with the campers. But before Lazlo could even make it past the pole that centered Camp Kidney, a loud shout rung high in his ears, catching the spider monkey's attention quickly as he whipped his head around in the direction the cry had come, spotting the cow, Herbie, crying as he ran out of his cabin in a panic.

"Its gone! Its gone!" he shouted in a panic, waving his arms about him as he ran blindly, until he bumped into something hard yet soft, and feeling hands rest on his shoulders to steady him before he fell backwards. Looking up through teary honey brown eyes, Herbie met sea green eyes that were framed by orange-brown hair and a large, warm smile of a spider monkey.

"What's gone?" Lazlo asked in a gentle, yet still friendly tone of voice, not removing his hands from the small cow's shoulders even though he was balanced on his feet again.

Muffling a sob, Herbie ejected his lower lip in a pout, before raising a hand to point at his red, burgundy Bean Scout scarf, speaking in a soft, squeaky voice, "My mother's necklace... it has a silver cowbell on the chain and... and its GONE!"

Humming in though, Lazlo wasn't exactly sure where the necklace could of gone. But, ever optimistic, Lazlo gave the Bean Scout a large grin, nodding as if agreeing with himself as he announced, "I'll help you find it. That sound okay?"

"Y-yes!" Herbie nodded quickly, wiping the tears off his cheeks as he gave the spider monkey a rather emotional, "Thank you so much, Mister!"

Lazlo laughed at the last word that fell off the boy's lips as he let his hands lift off Herbie's shoulders, waving one now free hand in the air as if brushing something away, "No need to call me mister. Lazlo is just fine."

"Oh, okay, Mister Lazlo!" Herbie beamed, before he snagged one of Lazlo's hands into his, tugging on it eagerly. He pointed in the direction of his cabin he had run out of, stating, "I know I had it on before I entered my cabin with Spike and James. So it should be somewhere nearby, but I don't know _where_!"

"Don't worry, we'll find it," Lazlo laughed cheerfully, letting himself be dragged on by the little cow. At least this gave him something interesting to do, and hopefully they will find it quicker with two instead of one looking for this little cowbell necklace. Lazlo would feel better when Herbie was happy and reunited with his mother's necklace, so he'd try his hardest to make the little boy smile again. It was, after all, one of the many reasons why he had return to Camp Kidney.

--

Rufus, the young red haired bird of paradise with thin golden yellow streaks in his long locks of hair, let out a tired, frustrated sigh as he stepped out of his cabin, where he left his two bunk buddies to chatter on about their thoughts of Camp Kidney so far. Telling the two apart would of been torture, how their faces were identical and height evenly matched, being twin brothers, but Pip sported a sandy, almost dirty gold blonde hair, while Zip had a pale brown hue, hair also more wild and unkempt where as Pip's was neat and well trimmed. Despite the hair, though, Rufus learned that not only are they identical in looks, but in what they thought, or at least expressing their thoughts, endlessly talking on and on about what they liked and disliked, nearly talking about everything and nothing at the same exact time. And truthfully, Rufus couldn't take another minute with the two.

As he stepped down his still nameless cabin's steps, Rufus heard a faint noise of rustling grass and the soft sound of dirt being thrown a short distance. Turning his cherry brown eyes towards the direction the noise was coming from, Rufus discovered it was coming from behind his very own cabin. Arching a brow, the bird of paradise let out an even more annoyed, frustrated sigh, having a feeling he'd regret going around the corner to investigate the intruder, but knew it was better to learn the truth and face facts head on instead of ignore it and remain questioning what it might have been for the rest of his life.

Rufus grumbled under his breath as he made his way around the cabin that was his own, stopping just short of turning the corner to take a cautious peek around the wooden building incase what he would be facing was a dangerous, wild animal of some kind. But much to his relief, or disappointment, Rufus wasn't exactly sure himself, the creator of the noise happened to be the ferret boy who had given him a hard time on their drive to Camp Kidney. From where the bird of paradise stood, he could tell that the ferret, Sky, was pushing patches of grass and soft dirt around to make a hole, seeming to be in the act of burying something precious or what the ferret would consider treasure. Rolling his eyes at this, Rufus boldly stepped out into the open, fists resting on either side of his hip as he demanded sternly, yet in a light baritone that was his voice, "What do you think you're doing?"

Sky jumped from where he kneeled before his freshly made hole, tail standing on end before he nervously peeked up and around, over his shoulder that was arched stiffly from being caught in the act. His eyes, which were an unique mixture of pale pink, almost silver in undertone, locked almost painfully slow with Rufus' cherry brown. The bird of paradise's words, though were heard clear as day, took a while to process in Sky's mind, having not expected to be caught until maybe a few months after he finished his little project in the soil. When the demand finally did ring clear and understandable, Sky forced an innocent grin, slowly moving one hand that held a silver trinket that had been preparing to toss in the finished hole, shoving it into his pants pocket as discreetly as possible, remaining silent for now._ 'Its better to stay quiet, or else Rufus might discover my precious shiny I found and take it away,'_ Sky reasoned inside his mind, inwardly nodding at the logic.

Rufus' face scrunched up a bit as his frown deepened and glare worsened, his left foot starting a slow, temperamental tapping as if ready to scold the ferret as a mother would after catching their child doing something naughty. He had spotted Sky's movement of stuffing whatever he had inside his pocket, and Rufus' patients were running extremely thin, making him feel the need to explode, attack, and get the answer out of the suddenly quiet boy kneeling on the ground before him. Clenching a fist on his hip, Rufus growled dangerously as he leaned in closer, feet staying stock still as they balanced their owner with surprising strength most wouldn't expect him to have in his skinny body, demanding in a slow, even tone, "What... are... you..._hiding_..?"

"...Noooothin'," Sky finally let out between pursed lips, silver pink eyes staring up into the sunny sky in an act of innocence.

Rufus' red, long tail feathers gave a sudden, violent shake, startling Sky slightly as he jumped back, though still remaining in his kneeling position, his own tail giving a shudder in slight worry. Most people would either ignore Sky after that sort of reply, but instead it seemed to only egg the bird of paradise on, cheeks puffing up in anger, dusting pink across his rather pale face. Thrusting an arm out into Sky's face, palm facing the sky in a 'gimme' position, Rufus ordered point blank, "Give it."

Sky's tail pulled between his legs in a negative fashion, innocent look turning into one of dislike as he scooted back a few inches, placing a hand over his pants' pocket where the trinket was safely kept hidden. Faintly caressing the lumps it created in his black, dry fabric which were his pants, Sky gave Rufus' hand a slight glare, before ejecting his head at it threateningly, nipping at the air in a silent demand to keep away.

Rufus growled at this, taking a loud step forward, kicking up loose dirt as he did. He refused to be scared off now, whether the ferret bit him or not. He had chosen to step forward, and he was going to make sure he went all the way through with it. So, with strong determination, which rivaled Sky's almost equally, Rufus commanded, "Give it to me, _now_, or I'll take it by force!"

"I'd like to see you try," Sky jeered slyly, before wishing he had just kept his big mouth shut. Before he could even let out a squeak, Sky found himself being tackled into the dusty ground, a smoke cloud of dirt floating around them as soon as they landed with a rough thud. Despite the difficulty of breathing with the dust filling their lungs, Rufus didn't waste a second, hands groping and slipping all over Sky, trying to wheedle his hands into the pocket with the demanded item inside it, all the while Sky wiggling and trying his best to keep the said pocket out of reach, keeping his weight on the side it was on and making it stab into his thigh unmercifully.

As the scuffle went on for a couple of minutes, Rufus grew tired of the endless fighting to get into the others pocket with no luck. So, calculating his next actions just right, Rufus grabbed a hold of the fluffy end that was Sky's tail, giving it a sharp tug and almost getting the wind knocked out of him as the ferret jumped upwards, whacking him into the stomach with a wild wave of his hand. Despite the smack, the red haired bird of paradise thrust his free hand into the pocket Sky refused to let him have access of, quickly feeling the cool, hard yet smooth texture of the trinket inside. Slender fingers gripped around the metal feeling chain tightly, before jerking it free of the black material that protected it, hearing a soft 'tinkle' as soon as waved in the air. "Got it!" Rufus cheered aloud as he jumped up off the ferret and gave the two some distance, keeping the silver object just out of reach.

"Hey, give that back!" Sky shouted loudly, face heating up in anger as he moved to jump to his feet and tackle the other boy and get his shiny back. But before he could move an inch from where he crouched on the ground, the noise of hurried feet scuffling on the dusty floor sounded from behind Rufus, followed by an eager cry as the trinket was almost violently ripped out of the red haired boy's hand.

"My mother's cowbell necklace!!" a blonde cow cheered for all around to hear, gripping onto the chain while holding it above his head to see the small, silver cow bell shaped object at the end of the necklace, letting it sway as it will and make soft tinkling jingles. His cheeks flushed in simple joy at being reunited with his precious keepsake, feeling comforted by the soft jingle.

"Good for you, Herbie!" Lazlo cheered happily with the cow boy, skipping over to the three scouts that stood behind what was once Pinto Cabin. It brought a large smile to his face as Lazlo spotted just how happy Herbie was once he got his lost necklace back.

Though feeling disappointed in loosing his new shiny, Sky smiled widely instead, pushing himself off the ground to side-step around Rufus to rush up into Herbie's face, silver pink eyes sparkling in innocent awe as he nearly leaned into the cow, their cheeks brushing against each other. Catching himself, Sky leaned back, slapping his hands on either side of Herbie's face and pushing his cheeks together, making the boy's lips purse in a poor act of a fish. "That was _your_ necklace? Its very, very pretty," Sky chattered on endlessly, his smile never dropping as he requested, "Herbie's your name, huh? Okay then! From now on, you and I are friends." As an after thought, Sky dropped a hand from the cow's cheek, thrusting it behind him as he pointed shamelessly at the bird behind him as he added, "Him, too."

"Uh, um... O-okay then," Herbie stuttered, feeling flustered and rather vulnerable under the ferret's eager demands of sudden friendship. And all over his necklace...?

"Hey, leave me out of your stupid friendship!" Rufus shouted as he gave the dirt under his feet a hard stomp of one of his feet, before spinning on his heels and stomping off. _'The twin bunnies are less annoying then that FERRET kid...'_ he thought to himself, his tail feathers ruffled up and out of place in his frustration and the scuffle on the floor before. It would take him hours to get it nice and neat again, and he was sure his long hair needed a good brushing through, as well.

Lazlo felt his chest flutter with glee at the scene of new friendship starting anew. It brought him back to his own past as a Bean Scout, meeting Raj and Clam for the very first time. It was one of the many things Lazlo loves about Camp Kidney, meeting new people who live so far away you wouldn't be able to meet them in your own home town. And the spider monkey loves it even more when he got to view said friendship starting between other scouts, instead of the ones he made and still makes himself.

Suddenly, Lazlo was brought back into the present as the announcement of mail rung high and loud, Mr. Slinkman's voice drawling in his cheerfully bored tone as he called for certain campers to come and retrieve their mail from parents. At the sound of his name being amongst the list, Lazlo scurried over to the building he remembered where the mail was usually stored, recalling the easily forgotten guinea pig that loved to run the place like his very own business. As soon as the spider monkey arrived, most of the Bean Scouts who's names were called already retrieved their own share of mail, before heading back to their cabins or where ever they had been before on the camp grounds. Mr. Slinkman, though, was still in the center of the room, skimming over the mail that belonged to the camp itself, chiding softly to himself, "Food bill, medicine bill, electric bill, water bill..."

"Heya, Mr. Slinkman!" Lazlo greeted, raising a hand in a friendly wave before skipping over the rest of the distance from the mail room's door to stand next to the banana slug, looking over his shoulder to see the mail his googily eyes were scanning over.

"Oh, hello, Lazlo," Slinkman responded, giving the monkey a quick glance before returning to skim through the mail in his hands. Faintly, the yellow banana slug tilted his head in the direction where the counter stall was placed, a single letter resting atop it harmlessly. "Your letter is right over there," he explained lightly, before an annoyed frown took his blank expression downwards, tsking as he held up a letter away from the others in his hands, "Oh, no, not again..."

"Hmm? What is it?" Lazlo asked, whipping his head around as he had headed straight over to retrieve his letter as soon as Mr. Slinkman pointed him towards it, arching an eyebrow as he noticed the letter the older man held. "Who's that for?"

"Prickley Pines Daycare," Mr. Slinkman read off the letter, though he had seen it so many a time, he was sure he could recite it at the top of his head by now. When Lazlo didn't reply right away, Slinkman looked over at the spider monkey, seeing the questioning stare he was giving him with a light frown on his usually chipper face. Blinking, Mr. Slinkman gave a sudden laugh, "Oh, that's right. You wouldn't know the place. It is only two years old..."

"They made a day care in Prickley Pines?" Lazlo asked, his blank expression turning into one of awe.

"That's right," Mr. Slinkman nodded, smiling a little as he explained, "It was made because a lot more families have moved into Prickley Pines over the years, some because they like smaller towns while others, like yourself, loved Camp Kidney and Acorn Flats so much, they wanted to be near it so they could send their own children to camp when they're old enough. Of course, to be fair to the campers, we have a certain age the scouts need to be, from nine to twelve. And thanks to Prickley Pines Day Care, all the children who are eight and under are taken care of while their parents work or go out on special dates. Its actually very convenient to new parents that live nearby."

"Woooooow..." Lazlo breathed, eyes widening with his drawn out word as his sea green eyes sparkled, cheeks turning pink as a curled in smile took over his face. His mind ran with sudden thoughts of little kids, younger then the ones around him, and having to take care of them. So cute and defenseless, holding onto your every action with need and joy... _'So cute!!'_

"The only problem is that the delivery man keeps sending their mail to US," Mr. Slinkman sighed in mild irritation, closing both eyes as he counted backwards from five to one and back again. Reopening his eyes, now calm once more, the banana slug continued, "Oh well, better head down to Prickley Pines and give them their mail. Its probably a request form from another new and very busy parent who is in great need of a babysitter."

"Oh, oh!" Lazlo called, jumping from foot to foot as he waved his arms wildly in the air, his own letter in one hand waving with a flutter with his actions. "Let me take it to them! I wanna see the day care and all the super, uper cute babies! Eeh hee!"

"Well... I suppose its okay," Slinkman reasoned with a dull hum, scratching his chin in thought. Shrugging his shoulders, Mr. Slinkman held out the letter for Lazlo to take, but didn't release his end as the spider monkey's hand wrapped around the other. "Just don't dottle for too long. I'd take you myself by bus, but someone other then Lumpus needs to be here to watch over the Bean Scouts. Just try to make it back before night fall."

"Don't worry, I'll be back before lunch!" Lazlo nodded his head in understanding, smile never faltering as Mr. Slinkman drawled on and on, giving the seventeen year old the exact directions, once he entered Prickley Pines, to where the day care center was set up two years ago. Feeling he had said all that he needed to, Slinkman released the letter, watching as Lazlo brought it closer to his chest before gently pocketing it away for save keeping. Doing the same with the letter from his parents, Lazlo gave Mr. Slinkman a salute, smile dropping to give a serious expression as he announced, "Aye, aye, captain!" Followed by a giddy giggle and another smile poking through, which he tried to keep down, but failed miserably.

"Have fun, Lazlo," Mr. Slinkman called as he watched the spider monkey skip out of the mail building and off down the road, shouting a quick, "And hurry back!" hoping Lazlo heard him, despite the distance between the two. He wasn't sure how long he could keep the new scouts occupied, and Scoutmaster Lumpus was no help in matters of activities. _'Its truly a blessing to have Lazlo back as a staff member...'_ Mr. Slinkman thought to himself with a small, affectionate smile. At least with the spider monkey around, he'd have less weight on his already sore shoulders.

--

It took nearly a half hour for Lazlo to arrive into Prickley Pines, exiting the trail where pine trees surrounded him and into the open, buildings ranging from large, long, stout, and wide, all made from thick, dark oak wood and cold, round pebble stones standing before Lazlo in greeting. A large smile curled his lips as he took note to how Prickly Pines hadn't changed in the least, except for a couple more buildings being added to the already small, but cozy sized town. Mr. Slinkman words were true from before, as Lazlo spotted a few more families walking about, guiding children too young to enter Camp Kidney or Acorn Flats by the hand as they made their way to where ever they were headed, as well as older teenagers hanging about outside or working to past the time of summer.

"Lets see now..." Lazlo hummed to himself, his feet still guiding himself through the town and waving to a few people as he passed by them, smiling charmingly as he did, "Mr. Slinkman said the day care was somewhere around..." Screeching to a stop, Lazlo looked up high, his smile dropping into the shape of a small 'o' as his sea green eyes widen in awe, reading the friendly, different colored letterings on the front of the building before him, slightly circling around the entrance door that was made of more see-through glass then thick wood, childish stickers and pictures hanging onto it for all who passes by to view. His eyes sparkled as he read aloud, "Prickley Pines Daycare Center..." not caring for any odd stares he received by doing so by civilians of the town who walked past the awe strucked monkey.

Lazlo smiled brightly before he stepped up towards the door, pushing it open and hearing a gentle jingle to announce his arrival to the workers inside. As he stepped in, Lazlo took a quick glance around, listening to the noise of baby laughter and innocent, cheerful giggles, along with shouts of glee and begging for attention. From where he stood, the place was comfortably charming, the flooring coated by a soft, baby blue carpet, walls the same light blue, but with fluffy white clouds painted upon it, hand paintings and scribbled doodles littering the wall as well, most likely made by the children themselves. In the entrance hall, where Lazlo entered, the floor under his feet were shiny tiles with little flowers decorating the extremely pale yellow background, a sandy brown desk and wooden fence that had a gate that would sway open easily if there wasn't a lock that needed to be flipped over on Lazlo's side, which also kept the play room and entrance room bordered apart. And despite the main desk being empty, the carpeted area was full of life, little boys and girls crawling and running about, some sitting before toy houses or toy boxes as they played harmlessly with one another, while a few cried over loosing their favorite toy to a greedy other or feeling their diapers full with unpleasant feeling unmentionables. And standing just before a changing table, a young blonde stood, finishing off changing a baby black haired panda boy's diaper, before pulling him up into their embrace, turning their attention over to where Lazlo stood, having heard the spider monkey's entrance of jingling bells.

"...Lazlo??" the blonde greeted in a disbelieving tone, blue eyes widening in surprise as he took in the appearance of the monkey boy. Lazlo, at first, was a little surprised himself at being recognized so quickly by the other teen, but after taking in the others facial appearance, he suddenly knew who was standing before him, a dark blue t-shirt and black shorts replacing his old attire Lazlo was so used to seeing on the other.

"Edward..?" Lazlo responded breathlessly, eyes widening as well as he took in how the five years apart had changed the platypus boy. His blonde hair hadn't changed, keeping his fluffy style that he had even as a Bean Scout, and neither had his pretty blue eyes, which only had increased in their unique beauty, eyelashes having grown thicker. Even his slender body, which had really shown when in a dress or skirt of any kind, looked perfectly curved in just the right places, arms and legs still skinny and smooth. But one thing that hadn't changed was the familiar frown and scowl that Edward shot Lazlo's way as soon as his surprise melted away.

"What are you doing here?" Edward nearly snapped, but kept his tone of voice light as he bobbed the panda boy in his arms gently, making the baby giggle as he blew spitty bubbles happily, his tiny black tail that poked out of his crimson red baby jumpsuit wagging cutely.

"Uh... Uh, oh, um..." Lazlo mumbled as he tried to snap himself out of his shock, but only succeeded in unconsciously reaching for the letter he came to deliver, pulling it free of his pocket and holding it out for Edward to take for himself. Gulping back a sudden thick clog in his throat, Lazlo forced out, "It was delivered to... uh, Camp Kidney, and I came to give it... to... you..."

Lazlo's words slowed down as Edward started to make the short distance between the changing table to the front desk and fence, nearly ripping the letter out of Lazlo's hand before setting it on a plastic bin on top the desk, where a few other letters and documents rested. As he did, Edward grumbled under his breath about lousy delivery men, before shooting a quick glare at the spider monkey, growling, "Thanks, I guess." That said, the platypus turned on his heels and marched off back into the center of the play room, going straight back to work as he set the baby in his arms down and moved to another youngster who needed a diaper changing.

While in any other situation, Lazlo would of jumped for a chance to speak with Edward or any other Bean Scout he had gone to camp with who he had lost contact in, Raj and Clam making an exception as they continued sending each other letters whenever they got the chance or free time, instead he found himself speechless, mouth opening and closing but no words emitting past his lips. And when the spider monkey finally found his words once more, Lazlo found himself no longer in the Prickley Pines Daycare Center, but just outside Camp Kidney, his feet having moved on their own without his knowing. Looking up to re-read the old entrance board that greeted him back to his beloved camp, Lazlo softly breathed, "Edward lives in Prickley Pines now, too...?"

-----

_**To Be Continued...**_

**(A/N): **This is my second Camp Lazlo, but first LazloEdward, fic(unless you count the LazloEdward rp I'm doing with Sayeh-chan). I had a couple plot-bunnies on how to make my first LazloEdward fic, but I had more of an urge to make one in the future(even if only a few years time) instead of centered in Camp Kidney, like my BeaverEdward one. d Anyhoo... Enjoy the first chapter!


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